Steam-etched solvent embossed tufted carpet

ABSTRACT

A tufted carpet material is printed with a decorative pattern. The ink formulation used for printing contains a solvent for the fiber of the carpet. After printing, the carpet is steamed. This causes the fibers to shrink and/or partially dissolve to produce an embossed effect. The carpet is then washed and dried. There is produced a carpet having an embossed design with a natural fibrous appearance.

United States Patent 1191 1111 3,830,683

Bohrn Aug. 20, 1974 STEAM-ETCHED SOLVENT EMBOSSED 3,236,586 2 1966Humphreys 8/I30.l

TUFTED CARPET ginereux mmura Inventor: Walter J- Bohrn, Lancaster,3,567,548 3/1971 Miller 156 277 [73] Assignee: Armstrong Cork Company,

Lancaster Primary Examiner-Marion E. McCamish [22] Filed: Aug. 21, 1972[21] Appl. No.: 282,276

Related US. Application Data [57] ABSTRACT [63] continuamnin'pan 512101June 301 A tufted carpet material is printed with a decorative pattern.The ink formulation used for printing contains a solvent for the fiberof the carpet. After printfi F' 161/66 3' 5 g ing, the carpet issteamed. This causes the fibers to f 62 shrink and/or partially dissolveto produce an em- 1 0 can 30 1 1 g 5 bossed effect. The carpet is thenwashed and dried. l There is produced a carpet having an embossed design5 References Cited with a natural fibrous appearance.

UNITED STATES PATENTS 2 Claims 2 Drawing Figures 3,053,609 9/1962 Miller8/130.l

l2 l6 l CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION This application is acontinuation-in-part of copending application Ser. No. 51,210, filedJune 30, 1970, in the name of Walter J. Bohrn and entitled Steam- EtchedSolvent Embossed Carpet.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART The present process for embossing a tuftedpile fabric involves the use of a solvent. When a solvent is used, theprocess broadly comprises the steps of 1) directly depositing in apredetermined pattern a solution containing a solvent for at least oneof the major constituent fibers of the pile; (2) dry heating the pilefabric to concentrate the fiber solvent; (3) compacting the pile; and(4) relofting the pile elements. This process is basically covered in U.S. Pat. No. 3,567,548. It is possible to add an adhesive to the solventsolution and obtain the combined effects of a solvent etching andadhesive effect. The presence of the solution in the predeterminedpattern area results in a dissolving in part of the fibers so that theyin turn act as adhesive materials. The compacting step is necessary todepress the pile to secure an embossed effect.

In the process herein, the hot air impingement type drying utilized inthe above'process along with the compression or compacting operation iseliminated. Elimination of the compaction also eliminates the need forrelofting. Herein, steam is used and the combination of steam andsolvent produces a synergistic effect. The fibers of the tufted strandshrink and/or partially dissolve to produce an embossed effect. The dryheat operation is ineffective without compression to provide the aboveeffect. Elimination of the compressing of the carpet helps permit theuse of certain pile constructions which would be deleteriously affectedby a compression operation which would tend to crush the pile and leaveit with a crushed appearance regardless of a relofting operation. Theprocess herein produces an embossed product with a natural fibrousappearance. This is particularly advantageous over the prior art processwhich has a distinct fused look, resulting in loss of fiber identity inthe embossed areas. Also with the elimination of the compression orrelofting operation, the process herein will generally provide more loftin the product than is obtained with the prior art process.

U. S. Pat. No. 2,1 10,866 discloses a pile fabric which is subjected toa solvent action to shrink the loops 6 of the pile fabric.

U. S. Pat. Nos. 3,053,609 and 3,236,587 disclose other embossed patterneffects on fiber materials wherein there is printed on the surfacethereof in certain areas a chemical swelling or shrinking agent for thefiber which shrinks it in the printed areas.

All three last above-mentioned patents which deal with solvents toshrink fibers are specifically directed to the use of a shrinking agentor swelling agent which shrinks the fibers and produces an embossedeffect. There is nothing in the processes of the above references whichindicates that the chemical agents which shrink the fibers also dissolvepartially the fibers. In the invention herein, there must be somepartial dissolving of the fibers, so that the individual fibers of astrand of material forming a loop will become tacky and adhere to eachother. However, the dissolving is not such as to cause the individualfibers to lose their fibrous appearance within the strand.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The process herein involves a printing stepwhich may utilize any of a various number of different 'printingtechniques. This could involve either the rotogravure, intaglio,flexographic, flat or rotary screen printing techniques. The inkformulation used in the printing operation generally contains a solventfor the fiber of the carpet. The printing technique is immediatelyfollowed by a steaming step. Here there is a combination of fibershrinkage and dissolving to produce an embossed effect. This operationis then followed by a washing operation which will remove from thecarpet chemicals suchas solvents or unfixed dyes, etc. Finally, thecarpet material is dried in the usual manner to remove the wash water.There is now provided a tufted pile carpet with an embossed arearetaining its natural fibrous appearance and having the individualfibers forming the strand which is tufted in such a condition that theindividual fibers are partially adhered to each other and tend tomaintain the loop configuration of the tufts.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING FIG. I of the drawing is arepresentation of the process utilized herein; and

FIG. II is a showing of a fiber strand which has been removed from acarpet made by the process disclosed herein.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT Referring to FIG. I, the processherein involves the printing of a carpet or any type pile fabric with awaterbased ink containing a dye for the fibers and including a solventor swelling agent for the fibers. Conventional printing apparatus 2 isused to print the carpet. This would involve any type of conventionalprinting technique such as rotogravure, intaglio, flat or rotary screenprinting. In FIG. I, there is shown a printing operation in whichpattern roll 4 applies the ink to the face of the carpet 8. A back-uproll 6 is used on the back side of the carpet 8.

With a carpet being made up of an acrylic material, the solvent orswelling agent may be ethylene carbonate. The following is a formulationof a typical ink for use on a /s inch gauge, Arinch pile, 42 oz./sq.yd.acrylic carpet:

The particular solvent, ethylene carbonate, used in this case is presentin a much larger quantity than one would normally find in conventionalcarpet printing inks containing dyes. The optimum viscosity will dependupon a number of factors, e.g., print application technique, designprinted, weight and type of fabric being printed, etc. The thickeneramount is varied to control viscosity.

After the printing operation, the carpet passes to a steaming chamber 12which applies steam in the temperature range of 212 to 220 F. Thesteaming normally takes place minutes after the printing operation.Under the effects of the steam, the dye will be developed on the fiber.In addition, and of particular importance, is that under the effects ofthe steam, the fibers in the area treated with the solvent will shrinkand to a degree dissolve to produce an embossed effect in the printedarea. The fibers within the embossed area still generally retain theirfibrous appearance, but the individual fibers within a strand now arepartially bonded together due to the partial dissolving of the surfaceof the fibers by the solvent. The carpet then passes to a conventionalwash tank 14 through which the carpet passes to remove any thickenersfrom the printing ink or any other residual chemicals which may remainin the carpet. The carpet then passes onto a conventional dryingstructure 16 which evaporates the wash water from the carpet in theusual manner. The carpet coming out of the dryer has a good hand, andthe appearance obtained in the embossed areas is that of a fibrousmaterial. The loft of the carpet ismaintained, and the embossed areasare particularly pleasing in appearance.

The amount of solvent used will vary from one carpet construction to adifferent carpet construction. Therefore, to get the proper fibrousappearance in the embossed area, there must be a balancing of thequantity of ink applied, and the solvent concentration in the inkformulation versus the construction of the carpet. Obviously, too muchsolvent dissolves the fiber too much and gives an embossed, butnon-fibrous appearance.

The process herein is carried out by the use of dyes and eliminates theneed for pigments and a pigment binder which may be undesirable for aflooring product due to the potential soiling problems associated withthe use of pigments and pigment binders. If the solvent is applied and asubstantial delay exists before steaming, the solvent will completelydissolve the fibers. Therefore, steaming should take place as soon aspossible after printing to get an embossed area with a fibrousappearance. Certainly, the use of a high concentration of solvent or astronger solvent can give the same results. Conversely, it is possibleto use a weak solvent or a lower concentration of the same solvent, witha delay in steaming and get comparable and acceptable results. Undersome circumstances, a pigment with a fiber solvent could be used in lieuof a dye.

With the above process, it is possible to print solvent with pluralpattern rolls and even coordinate conventional ink printing with thesolvent printing. This can be done by a single pass through anappropriate printing apparatus with multiple heads.

The above process was also performed on a nylon I material which was inthe form of a tufted carpet with a 5/64 inch gauge, 3/16 inch pile, and18 ounces per square yard. The solvent used was resorcinol at aconcentration of 20 parts by weight with an appropriate thickener. Thesolvent and nylon were used in the above process with steam, and anembossed product was formed with fiber identity in the embossed areas.

The steaming operation was carried out approximately 5 minutes after theprinting with the solvent. The strand which was used as the tuftingmaterial was composed of a number of individual fibers, approximately 85in number, which had previously been consolidated into a strand fortufting.

A carpet made of polyester fibers was also treated by the above process.The carpet was 5/64 inch gauge, A; inch pile and had a fiber weight of28 ounces per square yard. It was printed with a solution of parts byweight of phenol and 20 parts by weight of water with some thickener. Asteam treatment was used 5 minutes after printing and a pronouncedembossed effect was obtained with little or no loss of fiber identity inthe embossed areas.

Finally, a carpet was made of wool fibers. The carpet was 5/64 inchgauge, A; inch pile and had a fiber weight of 13.5 ounces per squareyard. It was printed with a solution of 1 part by weight of sodiumhydroxide and 97 /2 percent parts by weight of water. An appropriatethickener (1% parts) was added to facilitate printing. A steaming wasused approximately 5 minutes after printing and a pronounced embossedeffect was obtained with little or no loss of fiber identity in theembossed areas.

In all of the above examples, a pile loop was formed from a strand whichin turn was composed of a number of individual fibers. The solventtreatment was such that the outer surface of the individual fibersforming the strand became tacky and would tend to stick to each other.However, the solvent concentration was not sufficient to dissolve thefibers so that the fibrouslooking strand took on the appearance of beingsimply a single fiber strand. The action of the solvent was such as tocause the fiber strand which formed the loop to shrink in size and atthe same time for the individual fibers within the strands to sticktogether.

Now if the strand were pulled out from a conventional carpet aftertufting, the fiber strand would take on the appearance of FIG. ll. Aconventional strand which had been untreated by a solvent or one of theprior art strands which had only been shrunk, when pulled from thecarpet, would be a straight line strand. The bump effect 18 of thestrand in FIG. II has proved to be of particular value in the carpetsherein in that it makes the carpet highly resistant to tuft pullout.With tufted carpets, it is often possible for the claws of animals,womens shoes, or other objects to hook onto an individual tuft or loopand apply a force thereto. Since the tufts are formed from onecontinuous strand, it is possible by pulling on one tuft to pull out alarge number of adjacent tufts. It is not possible to then reestablishthe tufts within the carpet. Normally, the material pulled out is cutoff and you are left with a section of the carpet in which a series oftufts are missing and this is a very noticeable defect in the carpet.

Due to the fact that the individual fibers of a loop within the carpetof this invention tend to stick together, the removal of a strand fromthe carpet by pulling is extremely difficult to carry out. The loopconfiguration will not readily move into a flat, straight line configuration. The bump effect is maintained within the individual strandand this bump effect is very difficult to pull through the backing ofthe carpet. Consequently, the force applied to an individual loop of acarpet made according to this invention will provide a substantialresistance to pullout.

What is claimed is:

1. A process for embossing a fabric consisting of the steps of: printinga specific pattern on the fabric with a material containing a solventfor at least one of the fiber members constituting the fabric, saidfabric being a tufted material with loops in which the strands fonningthe tufts are composed of a number of individual fiber members, applyingsteam to the fabric to shrink the fibers within the tufted loop wherethey are affected by the solvent and at the same time to soften theouter surfaces of the individual fibers so that they become tacky andadhere to each other at the top portions of the individual tufted loopswithout the loss of their fiber identity, washing the fabric, and dryingthe fabric to remove the wash water.

2. A carpet structure having a surface layer which is formed of loops oftufted carpet material which are formed from a continuous strand ofmaterial, said continuous strand of material being formed from aplurality of individual fibers, said strand of material being adaptablefor tufting through a carpet backing structure, said individual loopsbeing subjected to a solvent treatment operation which applies solventto fibers of the individual tufts, said fiber also being subjected to asubsequent steaming operation, said solvent and steaming operationforming the top portions of the individual tufts into afibrous-appearing mass which has the individual fibers within the massadhered to each other so that the strand of fabric when stretched out ina generally straight line configuration will have a series of bumpsthereon which are formed by the masses of solvent-treated fibers of theloops adhered to each other and being incapable of assuming a straightline configu-

2. A carpet structure having a surface layer which is formed of loops oftufted carpet material which are formed from a continuous strand ofmaterial, said continuous strand of material being formed from aplurality of individual fibers, said strand of material being adaptablefor tufting through a carpet backing structure, said individual loopsbeing subjected to a solvent treatment operation which applies solventto fibers of the individual tufts, said fiber also being subjected to asubsequent steaming operation, said solvent and steaming operationforming the top portions of the individual tufts into afibrous-appearing mass which has the individual fibers within the massadhered to each other so that the strand of fabric when stretched out ina generally straight line configuration will have a series of bumpsthereon which are formed by the masses of sOlvent-treated fibers of theloops adhered to each other and being incapable of assuming a straightline configuration.